Hurry! There is still a chance to enroll in the League of Illinois Bicyclists’ (LIB) bike planning seminars. These 2.5-hour seminars, entitled "Introduction to Bicycle Planning," are being held in various locations throughout the state. The seminar is designed for planners, engineers and local officials, and will provide continuing education credits to planners and certificates for professional development hours to engineers. All seminars begin at 9:30 a.m. The remaining seminar dates and locations are as follows:

• February 16   Des Plaines   Oakton Community College, Conference Room A/B, 1600 E. Golf Rd.

• February 19   East Hazel Crest   South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association; 1904 W. 174th St.

• February 25   Wheaton   DuPage County Administration Building, auditorium, 421 N. County Farm Rd.

For more information, please contact Gina Kenny at gina@bikelib.org or (708) 334-2244.  Or download a description of the course [PDF].

The Association for Bicycle and Pedestrian Professionals (APBP) will be offering a webinar entitled “Cycle Tracks: Concept and Design Practices.” The webinar will take place Wednesday, February 17, 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. CST. See the APBP website or contact Debra Goeks (info@apbp.org) for more information.

The webinar will cover general design principles and practices, drawing from European experience. Examples from Cambridge, Mass., Montreal, New York City, and Portland, Ore., will be cited throughout.

Specifically, this webinar will cover:

• Definition of a cycle track
• Examples of means of separation from traffic and from pedestrians
• Space needs for one-way and two-way cycle tracks
• Intersection treatments
• Discussion of "false sense of security" studies
• What AASHTO says about cycle tracks, and other sources of design guidance
• North American cities' experience with design, operations and safety

APBP has applied for one CM credit from the AICP for this webinar. A certificate of attendance for those wanting to claim Professional Development Hours will be available.

(High-speed) Rails-with-Trails

Here is an interesting post: How ’bout some trails with those high-speed rails? Jonathan Maus – editor in chief of BikePortland.org – writes about a multi-modal approach to the proposed high-speed rail corridors.

Institute of Traffic Engineers Training Course

The Institute of Traffic Engineers (ITE) is offering a training course (Site Fee: $50) for engineers and other Transportation professionals, entitled "Overview of the 2009 MUTCD: Pedestrians and Bicyclists." The web seminar will take place on Thursday, February 25, 2010, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. CST. The course is being taught by engineers Bruce E. Friedman and W. Scott Wainwright, both of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) team in the Office of Transportation Operations of the Federal Highway Administration. The seminar will focus on the significant revisions made to the standards, guidance, and options that are included in the 2009 MUTCD regarding traffic control devices, including signs, pavement markings, and traffic control signals, with a special emphasis on changes that directly affect pedestrians and bicyclists. For more information and to register, visit the ITE website.

Pro Walk/Pro Bike Call for Proposals

The National Center for Bicycling and Walking (NCBW) announced the Call for Proposals for Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2010. The deadline to submit a proposal is March 5, 2010. NCBW seeks proposals for poster sessions, 90-minute panel presentations, and 90-minute guided discussions or workshops. For more information, visit the conference website. The conference will be held September 13-17 in Chattanooga, TN, and the theme of the conference will be “Bringing Livable Communities and Regions to Scale.”

An important new report, Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety and Mobility in Europe, is now available. The report was jointly sponsored by theFederal Highway Administration (FHWA), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). The report was co-authored by Priscilla A. Tobias, State Safety Engineer at the Illinois Department of Transportation. It presents the results of a scanning study done in Europe to identify and assess innovative and effective approaches to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety and mobility. Download the report now from the library of APBP's International Practices group.

The Village of Hoffman Estates released a draft version of their Comprehensive Bicycle Plan and Map for review and comments. The Village is accepting comments on the plan through March 31, 2010 at bikes@hoffmanestates.com.

The Village Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) oversaw the development of the plan, which includes maps of existing and potential on- and off-street facilities and an evaluation of the Bike Level of Service (Bike LOS) for potential on-street routes. The draft plan also includes sections on education, enforcement, encouragement, funding, and coordination. For questions, please contact Village Traffic Engineer Nathan Roseberry (nathan.roseberry@hoffmanestates.org or 847-252-5806).

Transportation facilities for pedestrians must meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). However, many jurisdictions have not yet complied with the direction from ADA Title II to create and implement a transition plan for addressing deficiencies in their public infrastructure. As of 2002, approximately 68 percent of municipalities did not have or did not know whether they had a transition plan (according to a survey conducted by Chicago Area Transportation Study).

The Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) is offering a webinar on creating and institutionalizing an ADA transition plan on Wednesday, March 17, at 2:00 p.m. CST.

The webinar will answer the following questions:

• What, exactly, is a transition plan?
• Who needs to do one, and why?
• When does it need to be done, and how often updated?
• What are the relevant federal standards and guidance?
• What is the state's role

Registration is $75 per site for non-APBP members and $50 for APBP members. CMAP will participate in the webinar, and government officials and staff, and the interested public are invited to our offices at 233 S.Wacker Dr., Suite 800 to attend. If you would like to attend, please email Yesenia Ambriz (yambriz@cmap.illinois.gov) to be put on the visitors’ list.

As part of the Chicago Cultural Center’s Creative Living in the City lecture series, Active Transportation Alliance and Friends of the Parks have organized a discussion with two national leaders in the sustainable urbanism movement: Carol Coletta and Doug Farr. The discussion will take place in the Claudia Cassidy Theater at the Chicago Cultural Center on April 8, 2010 at 12:15 pm. The discussion is free and registration is not required.

Carol Coletta is president and CEO of CEOs for Cities, a national network of urban leaders co-founded by Mayor Richard Daley and headquartered in Chicago.

Doug Farr is a Chicago-based architect and one of the nation’s leading experts on sustainable development. He is author of Sustainable Urbanism: Urban Design With Nature, a guidebook that visualizes sustainable urbanism as the normal pattern of development in the United States.

Their discussion will address how cities can play a central role in reducing carbon emissions and improving residents’ health by providing opportunities to walk, bike and take transit. Learn how cities are going green with high-performance infrastructure and buildings combined with urban planning strategies that reduce driving and create a greener future.

Photo of the Chicago Cultural Center by Flickr user phototravel1 from our pool.

A 2009 Journal of Public Transportation article, “Integrating Bicycling and Public Transport in North America,” presents an analysis of ‘bike-and-ride’ policy trends in North America, with extensive case studies from eight cities: San Francisco, Portland, Minneapolis, Chicago, Washington, New York, Vancouver, and Toronto. The League of American Bicyclists put together atrivia quiz based on the article’s findings.

An article entitled “Infrastructure, programs, and policies to increase bicycling: An international review” was published in January 2010 in the journal Preventive Medicine. The article assesses “existing research on the effects of various interventions on levels of bicycling. Interventions include infrastructure (e.g., bike lanes and parking), integration with public Transport, education and marketing programs, bicycle access programs, and legal issues.” The study concludes that there is a “crucial role [for] public policy in encouraging bicycling. Substantial increases in bicycling require an integrated package of many different, complementary interventions, including infrastructure provision and pro-bicycle programs, supportive land use planning, and restrictions on car use.”

New ITE / CNU urban roadway design manual

The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) have issued a new manual for recommend urban roadway design practice, Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach. The manual advances the successful use of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) in the planning and design of major urban thoroughfares for walkable communities. The manual provides guidance and demonstrates for practitioners how CSS concepts and principles may be applied in roadway improvement projects that are consistent with their physical settings. The report's chapters are focused on applying the principles of CSS in Transportation planning and in the design of roadway improvement projects in places where community objectives support liveable, walkable communities – compact development, mixed land uses, and support for pedestrians and bicyclists.

This weekend, local and national experts -- including Active Transportation Alliance’s senior planner Carolyn Helmke -- will meet to discuss opportunities for integrating Transportation, place making, and sustainable development. Sponsored by the Sierra Club’s Green Transportation Campaign and Building Healthy Communities Team, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Transportation for America, this one-day symposium will address the following questions:

• How do we plan for vibrant communities that create a sense of place, allow for many Transportation choices, and protect lands from development?
• How do we invest in high-quality Transportation infrastructure to elevate pedestrian, bicycle, and public transit options?
• How do we design efficiency into communities to meet everyday needs within a rich fabric of building and Transportation choices?

The symposium will be on Saturday, April 10, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Catalyst Ranch, 656 W. Randolph, Suite 3W, Chicago, IL. The cost, which includes lunch, is $25 at the door ($15 for students).  For more information and to RSVP, please visit www.sierraclub.org/Transportation/Chicago.

The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) has announced the next webinar in its Livable Communities Webinar Series, “Impact of the New MUTCD on Pedestrians and Bicyclists.” The webinar will review the significant revisions to traffic control that affect pedestrians and bicyclists. These changes appear in the most recent update to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), released by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in December 2009.

Traffic control devices are the signs, traffic signals, and pavement markings that guide motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists. The MUTCD defines the standards used by road managers in the U.S. to install and maintain traffic control devices on all streets and highways.

The webinar will be held Thursday, April 15, 2010, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. CDT.  Presenters include Bruce Friedman, a Transportation specialist, and Scott Wainwright, a highway engineer, both of whom work for FHWA.

For more information and to register, please visit www2.gotomeeting.com/register/529240787.

Active design can support broader goals of sustainability while also playing a crucial role in combating the rapidly growing public health issue of obesity and its impact on related chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers.

New York City has recently published Active Design Guidelines: Promoting Physical Activity and Health in Design. The manual provide planners, architects, engineers, and urban designers with strategies for creating neighborhoods, streets, and outdoor spaces that encourage walking, bicycling, and active Transportation and recreation.

The manual can be downloaded for free on New York City’s Department of Design and Construction website.

On April 21, 2010, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is hosting a roundtable on the need for Chicago and other cities to create walkable, safe streets and public places.  The roundtable will feature examples from cities around the world that are creating healthy communities through the good design and skillful use of streets and shared spaces.  The roundtable is from noon to 1:30 p.m. at MPC offices. Registration, which includes lunch, is $15 for MPC donors and $30 for all others. For more information and to register online, visit www.metroplanning.org/news-events/event/53.

Bicycle parking programs are essential for communities striving to encourage bicycling for Transportation as well as recreation. Convenient, easy to use, and secure bicycle parking encourages people to bike and helps legitimize cycling as a Transportation mode by providing parking opportunities equal to motorized modes.

On April 21, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m., the Association of Bicycle and Pedestrian Professionals (APBP) is offering a webinar on bicycle parking best practices.  APBP board member Eric Anderson will present APBP’s newly updated Bicycle Parking Guidelines, with special emphasis on two hot topics: in-street bicycle parking and implementing bicycle parking programs.

The registration cost for the webinar is $50 per site for APBP members, $75 per site for non-APBP members. Each registration includes one complimentary download of the Bicycle Parking Guidelines (priced at $20 for APBP members, $45 for non-APBP members).

To register, visit the APBP website. For questions, contact Debra Goeks (262-228-7025 or info@apbp.org).

Check out this video (a mix of live action and animation) about "cycle tracks." Cycle tracks are dedicated, protected bike lanes located between sidewalks and parked cars.  They are a species of buffered bike lanes.  In this video, Catherine Ciarlo, Transportation policy director in the Office of Mayor of Portland, Oregon’s office, explains how cycle tracks and buffered bike lanes work, and how they help create streets that are more efficient and safer for cyclists, pedestrians, and drivers.

On the Right Track from Mayor Sam Adams on Vimeo.

For more on cycle tracks, see the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) website on protected bikeways/cycle tracks and other emerging bikeway designs.

From May 18 to 20, 2010, Easter Seals Project ACTION (ESPA) will present a free three-day Online Conference on Pedestrian Access, as part of ESPA's series of ‘Promising Practices and Solutions in Accessible Transportation.’  Each day will include one, 90-minute session from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. CDT. The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center (PBIC) is co-hosting the online conference with ESPA and the National Center on Senior Transportation. The deadline for registration is Tuesday, May 11, 2010.  

Session 1: Tuesday, May 18
Policy, Design and Importance of Accessible Pedestrian Environments for Livable Communities
  Jana Lynott, AARP’s Public Policy Institute
  Scott Windley, U.S. Access Board

Session 2: Wednesday, May 19
Making Streets Accessible to All
  Michael Ronkin, Consultant

Session 3: Thursday, May 20
The Power of 25
  Peter Lagerwey, Toole Design Group

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a new report, “Recommendations for Improving Health through Transportation Policy.”  This report gives specific recommendations for including the consideration of public health within Transportation issues.  The key, high-level recommendation areas are:

• Reduce injuries associated with motor vehicle crashes
• Improve air quality
• Expand public Transportation
• Promote active Transportation
• Encourage healthy community design
• Design to minimize adverse health and safety consequences
• Require research and surveillance
• Support professional development and job creation

 Under the heading “Promote active Transportation,” the report specifies the provision of bicycling and walking facilities, Complete Streets, connections to transit, and Safe Routes to School.